Month: November 2019

https://www.engadget.com/2019/11/11/twitter-deepfake-draft-guidelines/

Twitter said last month it was working on ways to better to handle deepfakes. It just released draft guidelines on how to address the problem and it’s looking for the public to weigh in and help shape policies on what it describes as "synthetic and manipulated media."

Twitter says it’ll define "synthetic and manipulated media as any photo, audio, or video that has been significantly altered or fabricated in a way that intends to mislead people or changes its original meaning." It noted such manipulations are often called deepfakes and shallowfakes.

As the guidelines stand, when Twitter discovers deepfakes on its service, it may:

• place a notice next to Tweets that share synthetic or manipulated media;

• warn people before they share or like Tweets with synthetic or manipulated media; or

• add a link — for example, to a news article or Twitter Moment — so that people can read more about why various sources believe the media is synthetic or manipulated.

If Twitter determines a tweet that includes a deepfake or shallowfake "could threaten someone’s physical safety or lead to other serious harm," it might just remove the tweet entirely. Twitter already banned porn deepfakes last year.

The guidelines aren’t yet set in stone, and Twitter’s looking for feedback through a survey and tweets with the hashtag #TwitterPolicyFeedback. You’ll have until Wednesday, November 27th at 6:59 p.m. ET to weigh in. After reviewing and incorporating feedback, it’ll announce a formalized version of the guidelines at least 30 days before they come into force.

Not only can deepfakes be directly damaging to people, they can be used in disinformation campaigns, including ones backed by states. Twitter is one of several major tech companies exploring ways to tackle deepfakes. Amazon, for instance, recently signed up to Facebook’s Deepfake Detection Challenge, along with Microsoft, MIT and others. The group is building open-source tools to help governments and organizations identify deepfakes.

Source: Twitter

via Engadget http://www.engadget.com

November 11, 2019 at 11:42AM

https://www.droid-life.com/2019/11/11/stadia-is-launching-with-only-12-games/

As we already know, Stadia launches on November 19. Up to this point, Google and the Stadia team have had no problem in showcasing which games will be available (eventually) on the platform. Today, though, we know exactly which titles will be available on launch day and the list is incredibly short.

12 titles will be available through Stadia on November 19. Only 12. Google says that, “There’s something for everyone here: a library of superb, critically-acclaimed titles spanning multiple genres and age ratings.”

Launch Titles

• Destiny 2: The Collection
• Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
• GYLT
• Just Dance 2020
• Kine
• Mortal Kombat 11
• Red Dead Redemption 2
• Thumper
• 3x Tomb Raider titles
• Samurai Shodown

By the end of 2019, Google says it will add 14 more titles, bringing the total number of games on Stadia in 2019 to 26. Again, not a huge number, but it’s a start. Later this year, Stadia subscribers can look forward to Borderlands 3, Farming Simulator 19, RAGE 2, NBA 2K20, Football Manager 2020, and others.

I wouldn’t exactly say this group of titles for launch is ideal, but you do have to start somewhere. If you’re the early adoption type, streaming access to these games doesn’t exactly scream $10/month to me, but as the service grows, I could see myself taking it more seriously.

// Google

via Droid Life: A Droid Community Blog https://ift.tt/2dLq79c

November 11, 2019 at 02:53PM

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/disney-already-having-big-issues-on-launch-day/1100-6471368/

It’s launch day for the most-anticipated streaming service release ever. Disney+ has arrived, and there is plenty of cool stuff to check out. The only problem is that many people can’t access anything. Launch day for the streaming service is not off to a good start.

While you can download the app and even open it up, you can’t do much more than that with Disney+. Many people–including myself–are reporting error screens for Day One, and it’s been this way since the service launched around 12:30AM ET on Tuesday morning.

If you planned to take the day off to binge-watch all of Disney+’s programming or maybe you’re a journalist who started work early in order to pick through the contents of the service, you’re more than likely landing on a page that says "Unable to connect to Disney+. There seems to be an issue connecting to the Disney+ service. Please try again later if the issue persists."

And yes, this is extremely frustrating when you just want to watch The Mandalorian, which Chris E. Hayner got to review for GameSpot. In it, he said, "With its first episode, The Mandalorian has made a statement about what a live-action Star Wars TV show looks like. Now, with the remaining seven episodes in Season 1, it needs to make a statement about how a Star Wars plot should unfold over a longer form of storytelling." Thanks for rubbing it in that you got to watch it, and we didn’t.

Obviously, with any new streaming service, there are going to be speed bumps. With this many people jumping onto a service–at the same time–the servers may not be able to handle everyone. Disney is a very large company, so this problem should be worked out sooner rather than later, I hope.

While writing this up, and refreshing on more devices than I’d like to admit, I got Disney+ to work on my Fire Stick and Android phone. I’m still having issues on my PC and iOS devices though. So for now, know the problem isn’t just you, it will be resolved, and have patience.

Good luck to you on Disney+ launch day.

via GameSpot’s PC Reviews https://ift.tt/2mVXxXH

November 12, 2019 at 08:51AM

https://lifehacker.com/find-deep-discounts-on-international-flights-using-this-1839740293

While travel often is something we plan weeks and months in advance with specific travel dates in mind, sometimes you just know where you want to go and you’re willing to make that trip whenever it makes sense.

This week some friends of mine that are digital nomads, in that they don’t have a home and are traveling constantly, introduced me to Kiwi—and I’m hooked. It

The site allows you to search for travel to specific destinations by travel dates, but also allows you to be willing to travel “anytime” and get suggestions on when makes the most sense for you to make that trip. The “when” might be sooner than you think.

I did a quick anytime search for flights from San Francisco to Paris and found a $267 round trip ticket that leaves on December 6th, in just a few weeks, and returns December 16th. If that didn’t quite work for me the site offered a number of other options that were around the same price with different departure and return dates.

Searches can be tailors by the cabin class you want to fly, how many stops you’re willing to take, and how long you’re willing to stay in the air, amongst other things.

One thing my friend’s liked about it was that when you search for one-way flights, the site will highlight the round-trip options that are cheaper than flying one-way as well.

It works a bit better for international travel than trips inside the US. It also pulls in info from smaller local airlines where you’re traveling, a definite bonus for US travelers who might otherwise only see local airlines that work with US carriers in their results.

If you’re thinking about taking a trip I the next few months, the site is worth giving a try—you might find a bargain.

via Lifehacker https://lifehacker.com

November 9, 2019 at 08:01AM

https://geekologie.com/2019/11/happy-ball-want-outside-dog-learns-to-co.php

These are several videos of speech-language pathologist Christine Hunger’s dog Stella using the custom soundboard she’s been training with since puppyhood to communicate. The board currently contains 29 different words that Stella has learned individually, which she can string together to form thoughts much more complex than anything you’d read on Geekologie. Some more info about the first Instagram series of videos after the jump:

Video 1: After I said "Stella bed," she responded "Water." Sure enough, her water bowl was empty.
Video 2: Stella drank her water. After I said "Stella bed" again, she responded, "Toy ball want." We always leave Stella in her bed with her Kong toy. She had to make sure I found it first!
Video 3: After we found the Kong, Stella commented, "All done happy!" She got everything she needed and was ready for the day ?

Fascinating. You can follow Stella’s progress on Instagram or at HungerForWords. I actually started teaching my dogs to communicate using human language but abandoned the project when they started conspiring about how delicious I’d taste. I also stopped letting them sleep in the bed with me.
Keep going for some videos.

Thanks to DT, hairless, and Jocelyn, who agree pets being able to talk is a slippery slope.

via Geekologie – Gadgets, Gizmos, and Awesome https://geekologie.com/

November 8, 2019 at 12:12PM

https://www.npr.org/2019/11/08/776776312/the-water-is-already-low-at-a-florida-freshwater-spring-but-nestl-wants-more?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=news

Nestlé wants to increase the amount of water it withdraws from Ginnie Springs to nearly 1.2 million gallons a day, to the dismay of environmental groups and local activists.

(Image credit: Reagan Fink/WUFT)

via NPR Topics: News https://ift.tt/2m0CM10

November 8, 2019 at 05:04AM

https://www.legitreviews.com/xiaomi-debuts-smartphone-with-108mp-camera_215228

via Legit Reviews Hardware Articles https://ift.tt/2Y6Fy3O

November 6, 2019 at 09:22AM